A couple of weeks ago I took some engagement photos with John and Lucy.  Their playful, loving nature really showed during the shoot and we got some great photos to mark their special occasion.

First off, happy St. Patrick’s Day if you’re reading this on the day it was posted! I thought it would be very suitable to post because of all the green 😉 Now about the shoot:

These engagement photos were actually of my making because I proposed it to John (pun unintended). We play on the same soccer team (Jejuventus) and he is a friend of mine, so after I saw his post on Facebook which showed him proposing to Lucy, I decided to ask if he’d be interested in taking some casual engagement photos with me. He told me that they had already planned some pre-wedding photos for when they will visit Lucy’s hometown in Taiwan later in the year, but that they’d be happy to do a small shoot with me.

 

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The Location

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We decided on keeping it simple and nearby to John and Lucy, so we chose to shoot in and around the O’Sulloc Green Tea Museum in Seogwipo. I visited the museum two years ago, but besides the view of the surrounding tea fields, the museum was just average in my opinion. The best part for me was the green tea flavoured foods and drinks, and the lush, green landscape around the museum. A big draw for other people would probably be the numerous green tea flavored cosmetics and such. Not my cup of tea though (pun intended).

If you’re interested in checking out more about the museum here are a few links. It is a nice spot to check out if you’re heading towards Jungmun or Seogwipo City, and it’s right next to the recently opened Jeju Aerospace Museum which I’ve heard is pretty cool.

Korea Tourism Organisation – O’sulloc Museum (오설록티뮤지엄)

The Korea Blog – O’ Sulloc, ode to green tea

The Jeju Weekly – Green Tea Fields Forever

Also, here’s a map of its location:

 

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Gallery #1

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I arrived a bit early to our scheduled evening shoot so I could scope out the area a bit. I happily discovered that there was no need to pay an entrance fee to get into the museum – there were plenty of photogenic areas around the parking lot.

When John and Lucy arrived, we walked around and chatted for a while so I could get to know them better as a couple and get us all nice and relaxed. Soon thereafter, our 30 minute or so session next to the parking lot commenced. Here are my favorite shots from that time. Click any photo to view it in gallery mode.

 

 

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Gallery #2

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We ended the first half of the photo session after the rock photos, and after I reluctantly agreed to take some photos of two Korean girls near the same rock (with their Samsung phones of course), we headed to my special spot nearby.

The light was quickly fading once we got there, so I opted to use my tripod for the rest of the shots. I must say that I actually prefer using a tripod (that’s the landscape photographer in me talking) because it really makes me compose better and get everything in-camera and with my subjects correct before snapping the shutter. It also guarantees very sharp photos and eliminates blurriness due to handheld camera shake.

Anyways, I had a blast creating these images, and later we were all having a great time experimenting with external flashes, soft boxes, poses and Lucy’s scarf. I really have to thank John and Lucy for being so energetic, enthusiastic, and creative themselves while shooting. They posed themselves by themselves quite often which really made my job easier and more fun!

 

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Final thoughts

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First thing in my head – these are engagement photos, so where are the photos of the ring!  It totally slipped my mind to ask to see or photograph her ring. I’ll have to remember that next time…

Also, I should focus a bit more on varying my distance for the photos. Mainly, I need to get more close-ups and less landscape. Otherwise, I’m happy with the results. Hope you enjoyed checking out these images from John and Lucy’s engagement session. Congratulations to them!

 

Lastly, I’d really appreciate if you commented and let me know which photos you liked best! Knowing which photos strike others the most will help me in future shoots. Thanks for reading and commenting! Good spring to you!